The importance of a HANDOVER - Tips on things to look for! (1 Viewer)

[596]

Ok everyone, I need your help, from your real life experiences could you please guide me in how to complete the perfect handover when buying my new van. I understand that in the fog of excitement it’s easy to miss things, I want to go prepared with my own list hopefully aided by you to ensure I don’t miss anything, it’s a 4hr drive to the dealer I don’t want to be going back.

Feel free to be honest with anything you were glad you asked or checked, things you wished you had asked or been shown, and lastly any nightmares and lessons I or others could learn.

Although I am buying new, handover could also relate to secondhand. THANKS!

 

[CAJASAT]

We bought ours from Brownhills. We had a comprehensive handover session and, after lunch (provided by them), we went out for a decent drive around.

We then stayed on their campsite overnight and the same chap who did the handover came along in the morning to check all was ok and answer any questions having used the motorhome "in anger".

All very good but still forgot how to turn the fridge on with gas first time out!

Take notes and pictures as you go through the handover.

 

[maz]

.... never had Alde heating with crash sensor for example, I understand this means you can have the heating on using gas while driving ....

No heat exchanger then?

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[kevenh]

Check all the parts you saw (or expected for a new build) are there when you have the handover.

I saw a spare wheel on our MH at the test drive.
I forgot to check at the handover but a few hours later at home, when I got on the floor again to look at a drip, there was no spare wheel!

The dealer said there wasn't one but I had a picture of it - luckily.
Seems a genuine mistake as they've had to source a new one as the one I saw is not about.

 

[Mousy]

We are in the middle of a handover now in Belgium at Campirama. We arrived 2 nights ago. First night spent in our old van, yesterday we were given the new (to us) van. We stayed last night in it at the dealership and they are now doing some snagging stuff and making sure everything is perfect.

Can’t praise them enough. We have been dealing with Emanuel, very knowledgable and straightforward guy with excellent English.

I’d recommend Campirama wholeheartedly, nothing is too much trouble and a completely different experience from the purchase we had with a uk dealer.

Make sure you understand every single system, imagine filling with water, putting the hot water on etc etc.
We’ve spent 2 days literally crawling over every inch and even though we are swapping a hymer for another hymer there is still stuff to learn.

 

[Jonno1103]

That’s a good point, they have just launched version 2 school is the big touch screen controller I have, I watched videos on YouTube and it was a lot to take in, I couldn’t understand how it communicated as they don’t mention it, a bit of digging showed I had a pre paid SIM card in that lasts for 3 yrs, nobody can tell me what happens after that, I could be charged £100 a month for example, Swift referred me to Sargent who make it and they didn’t know, I asked if I could then put in my own SIM and they believed it was a sealed unit locked to the SIM, I still haven’t had an answer, so in effect I could be held hostage by a price they invent in 3yrs time or have no remote access if I don’t accept it, would I then also be charged the £95 a year for the tracker as well if I did pay for the SIM, they said nobody had ever asked that before, Oh Please! it’s not rocket science, some people may get a shock in 3yrs time, pay up every year or lose your remote control, I would rather have seen a SIM for life with cost built in. They said it was like sky TV, prices go up and if you don’t like it you cancel, so am I expected to lose a feature that was a buying point because they suddenly want to charge an as yet unknown annual fee, at least with sky I could choose someone else but I can’t change the controller easily, and by the way if you don’t pay for the SIM, your tracker that you also pay £95 a year for will not work as it uses the same SIM. And THAT is questions before I have even started the handover!

Sargent's Swift Command is still being developed & expanded, they haven't even got around to supplying extra data add on's after the three year period expires. You must also have a phone or device which is less than 4 years old and supports the newer Bluetooth 4 low energy. It also only works on 2G & 3G... 2G will be globally phased out by 2025.

You don't replace the sim, you just purchase yearly data add on's. If the sim becomes faulty it requires a workshop as the control unit needs to be replaced. Not only do you lose the ability to remotely control your key habitation energy options, you also lose your tracker.

... and yes from year 4 not only will you need to subscribe to ongoing data plans, you'll also pay a yearly subscription for your tracker.

For me there are just too many third parties to be reliant on, I'm not a fan.

Swift Command

swiftcommand.azurewebsites.net

As for the habitation alternative used on many vans, the sim card for Truma's I Net set up is slightly different as it has nothing to do with Truma and isn't supplied by them, your dealer or chosen motorhome manufacturer, the van owner supplies his or her own from whichever service provider they wish... It's a standard sim card which can be on a monthly subscription or PAYG. It's an option rather than standard operation. The sim card is also very easily accessible, push & click, just like removing an SD card from your laptop.

I also prefer a security system which is independent from the habitation components of the van.

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[596]

I may see if my wife will go with me for the handover if it can be done at a weekend, she’s not emotional about the van she just sees it as a functional vehicle for a job and as a figure on a spreadsheet, but two pairs of eyes and ears better than one

 

[Riverbankannie]

That control panel sounds a nightmare. What if you lose your phone on holiday ? I’ve been in many places this year, particularly in Germany, without a phone signal at all.

 

[Riverbankannie]

We had a situation this year where our touch panel control on the Omnivent roof fan failed. Flashing light codes indicated the motor was blocked. My husband took it apart and rigged it up on the dining room table with a three way switch and a couple of resistors. Worked perfectly and, as he said, will probably go on working till he’s dead !
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.anyway, Good Luck with the handover and definitely take the wife.

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[596]

That control panel sounds a nightmare. What if you lose your phone on holiday ? I’ve been in many places this year, particularly in Germany, without a phone signal at all.

The controller has a big touch screen you will see it on Youtube, the version 1 had buttons each side but this is all colour screen, it does everything your phone does so if your phone fails you can do it on the screen, if the screen fails your f....ked! It also runs on bluetooth so if wifi is not available you can walk 30ft away from your van and play with your lights dimming them.

I like technology, we don't have a light switch in the house its all remote sensors and voice control but my wife does like a switch and keeps moaning when the wifi goes down and nothing works, we rely so much on wifi and bluetooth sometimes simple is better, but not as much fun!

 

[Riverbankannie]

I like technology too, but only when it’s an improvement!

 

[596]

I like technology too, but only when it’s an improvement!

AND reliable

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[tonyidle]

One problem with using computer technology in a van is that failure can ruin or end a holiday. There is no facility for calling any repair or recovery company because there are non. It is bad enough when a simple base vehicle fault occurs but at least that has a chance of being fixed. With habitation electronics you're on your own unless a phone call can elicit instructions on how to fix it. On my current van I have learnt enough to bypass or work around the electronics (which only comprise a control panel connected to level sensors and the EBL).

Electronic control is being introduced because after initial investment in design and development it is incredibly cheap to implement being very much cheaper than physical switches, dimmers, manual heating controls, etc. An added bonus is that the consumer sees it as bling and rightly appreciates the extra (very cheap to implement) facilities that arrive with it.

 

[596]

I guess it’s like the Fiat comfortmatic gear box I was offered, its kind of just half there with issues at roundabout etc when you select 2nd it thinks third, with the new gearbox coming out now there was no way I wanted to have that because when selling in the future we are competing with a van a couple of months younger with the new full on gearbox, which would you choose? It would need to be a hell of a lot of money cheaper for me to go old tech,

I guess same goes for technology although Swift have just released version to which is in my van, will probably still have issues ?

 

[boxerdog]

I would always take a damp meter with me plenty of cheap good ones on the market and have a good probe around can save you a lot of problems later......................Ian

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[pandas]

Our handover took 3 hours and we needed it even though we are familiar with motorhomes.
One aspect we might have been interested had we know about it was the Fiat Extended Warranty. Reading the forums not may people have been offered the option before the offer expires - I think 3 months after the purchase.

 

[596]

Our handover took 3 hours and we needed it even though we are familiar with motorhomes.
One aspect we might have been interested had we know about it was the Fiat Extended Warranty. Reading the forums not may people have been offered the option before the offer expires - I think 3 months after the purchase.

15 days ?